Posted By:
warshawlawMost states permit the use of undisclosed reserves so long as the fact that an undisclosed reserve may apply is disclosed in the rules, which BTW all of us are SUPPOSED to read before bidding. You read the rules and saw the disclosure, so you are aware of the conditions of bidding. I have no idea whether Mastro uses undisclosed reserves, but if so, it will be disclosed in the auction rules.
Use of an undisclosed reserve is not shill bidding because it is a legal and long-established practice in auctions.
What many of you are thinking of as an archetypal auction is simply another form of auction called an "absolute" auction, where the item sells regardless of the bid and without reserve. In many collecting fields, absolute auctions are not the norm.
Concerns about overinflated reserves are unjustified. There is no way that an auctioneer will accept an item with a grossly inflated reserve. Remember, these people are in the business to make money, which they do via commissions on stuff that sells. If I try to consign a $1,000 card at a $3,000 reserve, the auctioneer will refuse to handle it because it would waste his time.
I do not consider a reserve, disclosed or otherwise, to be problematic as a bidder because I always bid what I want to pay and no more, and assume I will pay the max regardless of the status of my bids. I never stay up late babysitting an auction; if my best isn't enough, so be it. Remember, auction fever is a disease and those of you who catch it need help 